Research Areas

Fertility Research Today, Tomorrow and Beyond

The science of reproductive medicine is constantly evolving.
Many of the advances made in the field in recent years would
have been considered impossible even half a decade ago. This
progress is due in large part to the mapping of the human
genome, which has and will continue to have, an incalculable
impact on science and medicine. With emerging technologies,
molecular analysis and diagnosis is now possible, affording us a
clearer understanding of the genetics of the egg and the embryo,
as well as the genetic cause of disease. By translating this
data into innovative testing and treatments, we are now able to
solve problems in the laboratory. Personalized medicine is
fueling a significant new paradigm shift in reproductive
science.

Understanding the conditions necessary for optimal
embryogenic processes in the laboratory is a main focus of our
research. Customization of the culture environment has a
profound effect on the viability of eggs and embryos, which in
turn, increases the success of IVF practice. And because genetic
health is determined at the embryonic stage, this work has an
inestimable impact on the health of children born through the
use of assisted reproductive technology.

[Following this will be: The Research Institute at Work
Today: Oocyte Cryopreservation Technology The Mission at Its
Core: Egg Freezing and Fertility Preservation for Cancer
Patients (with optional page on more in-depth egg freezing
information) The Future of Cryobiology]

The Research Institute at Work Today

Our current emphasis in fertility preservation at LIFE
Research includes both oocyte and embryo freezing. While egg
freezing technology is still classified as an experimental
technique by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM),
we are encouraged by recent success rates. Worldwide, over 500
babies have been born from frozen eggs, with approximately ten
percent of those born in the United States attributable to
patients in our private clinical practice. Overall rates of
miscarriage, birth defects and chromosomal defects for babies
born from frozen eggs are no higher than the rates seen with
natural pregnancies in the general population.

The Future of Fertility Preservation

Beyond egg and embryo freezing, we are continuing our work in
the area of ovarian cortex preservation and in vitro maturation
(IVM) of early-stage oocytes. To date, four births have been
reported using transplanted, cryopreserved ovarian cortices. The
success we have seen with ovarian cortex cryopreservation
followed by transplantation or IVM is particularly encouraging
for women diagnosed with cancer, as IVM does not require lengthy
ovarian stimulation, and women need not postpone cancer
treatment unnecessarily.

As we look forward, we anticipate an expansion into more
advanced technologies involving various modalities for egg
reconstruction. This includes nuclear transfer, which combines
components of a younger, healthier egg with the non-nuclear
genetic material from an older egg. Ovarian and follicle
engineering are additional technologies that may provide
revolutionary reproductive options for women.

Improving the Science of Fertility Preservation for Cancer
Patients

LIFE is committed to advancing the science and application of
fertility preservation technology for the tens of thousands of
reproductive-aged women diagnosed with cancer each year. Because
chemotherapy and radiation therapy can cause infertility by
damaging the ovaries and the eggs, the ability to freeze
eggs—and in some cases, ovarian tissue—allows women to complete
cancer treatment and still have the option of a future
pregnancy.

The possibility also exists of utilizing these technologies
for children who are diagnosed with cancer and leukemia. Doctors
in Israel recently published results of their successful
extraction of eggs from girls and young women, aged five to
twenty. The eggs were matured in the laboratory and frozen,
providing these patients the possibility of future fertility.
These findings represent a new era in fertility preservation
research to benefit children with cancer.

Embryo ICU™

The Embryo ICU is a critical component of our research
methodology. It is here that we monitor and customize the
conditions under which embryos develop in order to maximize
their survival and promote optimal development. In the general
practice of IVF today, every embryo is grown under the same
conditions, including identical culture media (salts, growth
factors, sugars and proteins). This practice, while moderately
successful, still results in the loss of 70%-80% of embryos by
the fifth day of development.

In our research, we employ methods to examine an embryo’s
secretions in order to detect changes in health. Then, based on
this analysis, we seek ways to supplement the culture medium
with the necessary molecules specific to that embryo. This
principle of individualized care is central to our work at LIFE
Research. Optimizing the genetic health of the egg and the
embryo directly increases the chance of successful IVF and
positively impacts the health of children born through assisted
reproductive technology. We look forward to broadening the reach
of our efforts and developing more advanced technologies for
human health.